Protection of the Environment in Relation to Armed Conflicts


Publisher: Conflict and Environment Observatory and PAX

Author(s): Doug Weir and Brittany Roser

Date: 2022

Topics: Climate Change, Conflict Prevention, Governance, Peace and Security Operations, Weapons, Waste, and Pollution

Countries: Russian Federation, Ukraine, Yemen

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Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has focused unprecedented public attention on the environmental consequences of armed conflicts. The widespread and massive damage to urban areas, industrial zones, energy infrastructure, prime agricultural land, and important terrestrial and marine protected areas will have lasting consequences for civilian lives and livelihoods and ecosystem health.

The environmental implications of the conflict stretch far beyond Ukraine’s borders. The loss of agricultural land has undermined global food security, and the role that fossil fuels continue to play has highlighted just how insecure our hydrocarbon dependency has made us. Meanwhile, the ongoing geopolitical fallout is impeding the international cooperation necessary to tackle the climate, biodiversity, and pollution crises.

The linkages between conflict, militarism, and the environment have rarely been clearer and this should be reflected by delegations during the First Committee